


One Thousand Stars to Capture Love

by Jahaliel



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Gen, Poetry, a collection of poems all also on my tumblr, a couple are angsty, a few Solas/Lavellan, all about love, like one poem for varric/F!Hawke, mostly cassandra/varric, ships tagged at the start of each chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-24
Updated: 2016-03-04
Packaged: 2018-05-22 23:32:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 4,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6097530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jahaliel/pseuds/Jahaliel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of poems mostly featuring Cassandra/Varric because OTP.  Each chapter is one poem and will have the ship in the notes.  I will also reference any inspiration in the notes on that poem.  All SFW.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Smile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric
> 
> the first thing i ever wrote for the ship.

The best thing about being in love  
Is the smile they save just for you

On the Seeker it’s a soft curve  
in a face of angles and sharp edges  
It says more than I love you  
It says I trust you with my heart

On the storyteller its almost a smirk  
That holds knowledge of legs that don’t quit  
Brightened by the look in his eyes  
For which emotion love is too tame a word

And the best thing about watching two people in love  
Is the special smile they save just for each other


	2. If I Had Words

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric pre-relationship

If I had the way with words you do  
I would be able to tell you   
How much I appreciate what you do   
  
The way you make me smile   
And the way you make me laugh   
I’d even admit in print that perhaps   
Your words can make me blush  
  
I would tell you that you’re important   
And all of you is glorious, not just the hair   
That I have come to think of you  
As a friend - maybe ~~more?~~ (only if you care)   
  
But I have no words to describe what I feel   
I don’t know if its even real  
I guess I’ll just wait and see   
If someone like you could take a chance on me  
  
If I had the words to say I ~~love~~ care for you   
What would you do?   
~~If I bent down and kissed y~~

 

(Written by a certain Seeker, torn up and burned to ashes in the fireplace)


	3. Adamantine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric pre-relationship
> 
> This is actually a song and you can find a rather low quality version of me singing it here:  
> 
> 
>  
> 
> <http://soundcloud.com/jahaliel/adamantine>
> 
>  

I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes  
I’m in love with a woman whose smile is stronger than wine  
I will hold her secrets safe, I long to grow old with her, and grey  
Oh I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes

Though we started off with fighting and distrust  
We have come so far, and built something strong  
If I only had words to say, but you take my breath away  
With you, whether in peace and in war I belong

I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes  
I’m in love with a woman, whose beauty is truly divine  
I would give all I am to keep her close, gladly I would bear that cost  
Oh I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes

I would be your right hand, fight off dragons for you  
And when bears attack I’ll shelter safely behind you  
No matter how long it takes, no matter if we have years or days  
I will spend the rest of my life in love with you

Oh I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes  
I’m in love with a woman with strength of steel in her spine  
I will love her til the end of time, and I hope she will be mine  
I’m in love with a woman with adamantine eyes

—- from a scrunched up paper thrown behind Varric’s desk in a fit of pique. It seems no matter how hard he tries to describe his feelings it never quite captures how much he cares with her. Or worse it sounds like a lovesick puppy’s bad ballad


	4. Time in the Sun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> these next 3 poems are Inspired by the fanfic "Logolepsy" - found here:
> 
>   <http://archiveofourown.org/works/4852994>
> 
> by vehlr and weatheredlaw

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric

One day when all is said and done  
When orders are rebuilt and there are no more wars to be won  
When rogues can retire without saying one more job, just one  
Then we will have our time in the sun

Kisses and aching laughter and faded pain  
Love is nothing without the sorrow as well as the fun  
If we can built something better then it should be done  
We will wait for our time in the sun

It may be far from the lands we walk  
In a different place, a place of peace  
That we will dance again beneath the summer sun  
And kiss and laugh, knowing our time has begun

Until such a time quill and ink will suffice  
Perhaps to fill the ache in our chests  
And we will think of us and how that even came to be  
We will dream of sharing time in the sun


	5. Another Life, Another Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2nd poem inspired by the fanfic "Logolepsy" - found here: <http://archiveofourown.org/works/4852994>
> 
> by vehlr and weatheredlaw

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric

If I were to kiss you in the morning  
would I taste the spices of tea upon your lips?  
And would you hold me ‘til the evening fell  
and we could run away forever?  
  
I dream of being together, I dream of holding you close -  
I worry about not being there to guard your back,  
and hope my prayers are enough to see you safe.  
When they said love would last forever I don’t know if this is what they meant.  
  
This passion in our pages, the language of love -  
written instead of spoken, by our own hands or none…  
And I wish sometimes that we were different people,  
that our story might have been simple just two lovers roaming the world in search of adventure.  
  
Instead we have this communication, a story, a poem -  
even with the talent in your pen I’d rather have your hands on me -  
just to hold me close for a minute or two,  
maybe even a night ( _Maker just one_ ) to be together.  
  
But we are committed to the paths we walk - don’t worry I’ll be fine,  
and I’ll worry even though I know you’ll be fine.  
I pray one day we can turn this - whatever this is - into joy  
and that we don’t have to wait for another life, another time…


	6. Shattered Glass and Broken Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3rd and final (?) inspired by the fanfic "Logolepsy" - found here: <http://archiveofourown.org/works/4852994>
> 
> by vehlr and weatheredlaw

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> angst ahoy ^.^  
> Cassandra/Varric
> 
> I nearly titled this Chapter 25 of logolepsy broke Me

shards broken scatter rainbows like memories of what was once joy  
whiskey and wine sour without the smiles of a presence so quickly needed  
and the pain of love is in the beauty that remains when the hearts are broken  
and the reality of love is in shattered glass shimmering upon the fire’s hearth

love is a truth and as many truths are, it is often unpleasant  
unlooked for, unasked for and often unwilling given - ashes coat tongues  
that were once full of honey and laughter, so quick to fall, so fast to burn  
and when the flames of wildfire fade, the ground is scorched and black

(have you ever seen a forest after a fire has gone through it -  
the tree trunk are black, there are no leaves, no bushes just  
dire and the trunks of trees but for all that darkness and pain  
sometimes out of the nothing a new branch, green and strong grows

when all else fails, hope remains as fragile and broken as a shard of a glass)


	7. Our Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey look it's not Cass/Varric for once XD
> 
> This is Solas/Lavellan I really love this romance, shoutout to the very talented fic writers who sail this ship.

Our love is made to move mountains  
Our love could change the world  
Don’t let me go, let me stay by your side  
And I swear I will be there until the end

I promise you will not die alone  
I promise there’s a different way  
And we will find it together if you  
Don’t let your pride get in the way

I believe that our love can move mountains  
I believe that there’s a reason that we met  
And I believe that there’s hope for us though you’re allowed to disagree  
But I will not stop loving you until the day I die

You are my everything and I would be yours  
Why do you try to bear your burdens all alone  
I would help you carry them, I would ease your pain  
I will never stand against you - I just want to help you

Our love is stronger than mountains  
Our love will be the force that changes the world  
In dreams as in life I will be standing by your side  
You don’t have to be alone, my love


	8. Quick Quatrains - Soulmate AUs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric in various soulmate AUs
> 
> Short and sweet one day they might become actual fics idk.

**The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo**

There’s a strange peace in this corner of the mansion  
Behind long black hair, eyes are cold and clear  
As with needle and ink a tattoo appears - dragon scales hide initials  
She refuses to seek a mate; it is the truth that to her heart is dear

**Two Mates, too late**

He bore a scar beneath the vivid scarlet of his tunic  
Where a name (Bianca) lies marred over like he doesn’t care  
He never notices a second smaller name that appears later  
Nestled near his heart, hidden by his hair

**Colours of the Soul**

For her sunsets were pink and orange - she could pretend  
That she missed no colours from the spectrum bold  
But in a dusty cell seeking truth with power and passion  
She sees for the first time the beauty of ruddy gold

**This can’t be mine**

Destiny drowns, a sorrow strong as a city rebuilds  
Like a phoenix rising from the ashes - but at what cost  
A tether stretched too far will bend and snap in two  
And this time they both know what it was they’ve lost


	9. Angst-Free Christmas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A more general fan-poem  
> References Cass/Varric, Solas/Lavellan, Josie/Blackwall
> 
> to the tune of I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

I’m dreaming of an angst free christmas  
where cass and varric are alright  
where the chargers live and  
josie gives  
blackwall the best night of his life

I’m dreaming of an angst free christmas  
where solas leaves the veil alone  
spends his days and nights at home  
with his vhenan by his side

i’m dreaming of an angst free christmas  
with dorian and cullen playing chess  
i dream of love abounding  
and friendships founding  
in skyholds great grand halls

i’m dreaming of an angst free christmas  
with games of naked grace and cheer  
and bull downing so many beers  
with the circle laughing til they cry

and no-one ever’s going to die

in this angst free christmas of mine


	10. Until is Your Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> written for vehlr as a bday present

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric

There’s something about the world ending  
(Again) that makes love something sought for  
Fought for and yet there’s reluctance to commit  
It’s hard to promise forever when you don’t know if you’ll live   
Past the next trip to Emprise or the Hissing Wastes or wherever the Inquisitor goes

And its hard to even admit to love when your relationship  
Is founded on stories and lies, even when you’ve sworn  
To tell truths from now on you can still be caught short  
And somehow the disappointment, hurt quickly masked and hidden away  
Hurts you more, scares you more than her anger ever did

For a while you pretend its physical, you don’t know if she does the same  
But she’s romantic at heart and perhaps she deserves more than this  
Uncertainty of anything beyond the care and warmth of shared bed  
She says it first - she thinks you’re asleep, but you hear it, “I think perhaps I’m in love”  
And something shifts that night into the next day, next week, next month

Its a close call from a dragon’s talon that brings the truth out  
And love is a bright star in a world dark with war and pain  
You make the choice together, to be together sharing all  
“Until” is your forever, “Always” the softly spoken farewell  
And when the night is over and dawn comes, you’ll have forever as well


	11. A Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric
> 
> written for Satine86

The year ticks over - she has lost so much  
Her brother, her love, her Order but not  
Her hope, her faith or strangely enough  
Her friends - they are as strong as the stones of Skyhold

And he finds her, he has a knack for that  
For finding her, and she’s never told him  
That he holds what’s left of her heart in his hands  
But when he tugs her down into a kiss,

There’s a promise there, left unspoken  
That she’ll have him for the next year  
And then as long as she cares to have him  
Her careful response, aware of her strength

Is a promise itself in answer


	12. Salt and Stone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric
> 
> dedicated to vehlr

A daughter of salt,  
of tears swallowed  
down - shield and strength  
hides the scarred heart

A son of stone denying  
heritage -smithing words  
instead of metals,  
soft heart beneath sarcasm

A story of thawing,  
a story of melting.  
A story of two becoming new,  
a story old,a story true

A daughter of salt danced beneath two moons  
hands entwined with a son of stone


	13. Surprised

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra/Varric
> 
> for OrilliaOrange

It surprises him - how quick she is  
To anger but also to forgive  
And that she offers what  
She can - it’s hard to  
Deal with until he  
Remembers  
She’s seen  
Loss

He  
Wrote for  
Her, just her?  
She cannot be mad  
Even after all the lies  
Kindness surprises her and  
That makes him wish to surprise  
Her every day for the rest of her life


	14. This is How a Heart Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> inspired by the wonderful fic Where Legend Remains by coffeeguru found here: <http://archiveofourown.org/works/3774367>

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> F!Hawke/Varric

a long endless argument when confessions are held back from hurt  
never getting the chance for forgiveness, living with the greatest fear  
it’s a star crossed story and the second time hurts more because it was  
never meant to be and he knows, oh how he knows that heroes don’t  
have happy endings but he looks at her words and he wishes that  
this time it could have been different…

He never got the chance to say the words in his heart unspoken  
She never got to tell him how he fixed her heart that lay broken


	15. The Dawn Will Come

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric

The fires that have sprung up around the camp do little to warm the night  
Cassandra stands by one, quiet - her silence belies self hatred, why didn’t  
She go back, why did she run, why did she leave behind the Herald - much too young  
To die there alone, and the air is cold, and her tears are a glittering line of ice  
That she would deny to her death, she is not weak, cannot afford it to show

He watches her, he has since before when she stabbed him in the book  
And he sees her pain when no-one else thinks to look, but comfort from him?  
A liar, a rogue - he goes to her anyway, he has little faith to spare but what he has  
belongs to no god, but it is for her - and he tries to find the words to heal  
Silver tongue turns leaden but he still tries, he knows how this despair feels  
The blizzard reaches its peak, the darkness its bleakest reach

There is a cry - a shout from the edges of the camp, they look then at each other  
And run - the Herald is alive! And there is awe and the storms begins to clear  
Once again the two are found by the fire standing near and he smiles at her  
This warrior (whom he certainly will never fall for) she returns it and the first  
Rays of light break though the night, as voices raise in song. The dawn will come.


	16. Hallelujah (Worth It)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _This time we’re not giving up_  
>  _Let’s make it last forever_  
>  _Screaming “hallelujah”_  
>  _We’ll make it last forever_ \- Hallelujah by Paramore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric
> 
> written in response to this piece: <http://archiveofourown.org/works/5736826> by vehlr

It happens slowly, and all at once - lies hidden in hearts  
Broken and scarred, unwilling to trust, unwilling to give up control  
But the heart wants what it wants, the laughter she gives  
The smile he seems to save just for teasing her

And when the admission comes, it comes knowing  
That he could still be in love with some other  
Never before has she wished time to fly faster  
Maybe when the worlds saved they can work this out

Forced to confront what he already knew, but was not ready to admit  
He realises the truth of where his heart lies - she is gone by then  
To rebuild the Order of her past and so he writes, he’s been good at words  
And while the letters fly he wishes time would pass and bring them together

The best things in life are worth waiting for - and his proposal is certainly that  
She is honest with him, they are honest (finally) with each other and this time  
Neither will walk away, they are committed to working out this relationship  
Because loving the other makes them complete in a way they never though to find

And it lasts a lifetime, beyond a lifetime - a story passed through ages  
Of the song of the stone and the strength of the souls, a story of love

A story of hope


	17. No Peace for the Wanderer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> inspired by no rest for the weary by weatheredlaw, found here: <http://archiveofourown.org/works/5772298>

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric

Heavy is the cost of wresting the world from doom  
A crown uneasily sitting upon gold strung through with steel  
A shattered sword and battered shield and bitter gloom  
Lay to rest without the words spoken that’d allow hearts to heal

This is the price of delay - of lies and blind eyes  
It is a scarlet river, a scream ripped from the hidden heart  
It is a confession that trembles and then dies  
Unspoken upon a final breath, ghosted through lips apart

Broken - a light darkened before its time  
Repercussions echo through the mountains snowy peaks  
Mourning bells ring their tune solemn, somehow sublime  
As silently the most broken out of the castle sneaks

No peace does the wanderer find, no end to the world’s woes  
There’s no rest for the weary souls, but that’s just how the story goes


	18. A Whisper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric

History will not remember her as herself  
They will see only the legend they wish  
They forget too easily the cost in lives  
Those that were welcomed at the Makers side

And they do not remember the softness  
They pretend that the cowardice did not exist  
But the first time she told him “I love you”  
was the last she’d see him, she was convinced

And the battlefield is no place to read declarations  
Whispered on your hearts own lips so far from yours  
So you fight and you pray for you both to see another day  
That you may claim those lips with your own

Fervently repeated, a truth that needs no silver tongue  
I need you, I love you, you are my only one


	19. Love and Loathing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hey look a wild not Cass/Varric poem has appeared...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Solas/Lavellan

a tangled mass of briars, pricking and bleeding but the flowers that bloom  
on the vine are beautiful enough to make her forget the pain

the thorns grow longer the deeper she falls

a coin is flipped, love is enough sometimes and there is hope and joy  
but more often the vines constrict, a heart breaks and only hatred remains

what happens when the coin balances on its edge?


	20. You Shouldn't Have

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (i have a headcanon that due to cass' noble background she would have learned to paint and embroider etc and was bribed to do so with the promise of sword lessons after)
> 
> written for OrilliaOrange

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cass/Varric

There’s a click of a door that wakes him - rogues never sleep soundly  
And he watches from carefully half-open eyes, a figure moves close  
A kiss, so gentle and soft he would swear he imagined it  
And then footsteps, he knows those legs - those curves, she leaves  
Behind something on his desk, and then once again the door clicks

He sits up, carefully, in case she lingers yet and rises to see the gift  
Wrapped in haste, but then when he opens it, there’s an expensive rune  
Carefully shaped to fit into a crossbows stock and something else too -  
A paper, blank until he turns it over and then he laughs, the sound rich and full  
For on the canvas is a lovingly rendered sketch of the characters of his book  
Swords and Shields - although when he looks closer he could almost see  
That their faces resembled his and hers - and he will have it framed

He knows that she will be practicing for a while yet and so the author plots  
Wiping the sweat from her brow she climbs to her rooms above the forge  
To discover a picnic breakfast all laid out, and a grinning dwarf holding a book  
“I brought you the next chapter,” he says, smirks because damn him, he knows  
She can’t resist the lure, sure enough the manuscript is plucked from his hand  
Dropped unceremoniously to the side and her lips are warm against his  
“You shouldn’t have” she says, later when they are eating - sitting close  
He just raises an eyebrow in response, “I could say the same to you Seeker”

This was something neither had expected to find  
And yet, and yet it had found them  
In the harshest times, love thrives


	21. What is Love - Cole Asks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> originally my tumblr valentine day post. also inspired a mini cass/varric fic that i'll post here sometime.
> 
> technically there's no real relationships mentioned, just most of the inner circle giving their thoughts on love.

It’s not enough. On its own it only leads to sorrow. But the moments of joy and emotion it brings can cause feet to falter on a path walked for so long. It leaves its mark in the Fade softer than tragedy but endlessly enduring even so.

It’s being accepted. Just, that knowing that no matter what you are enough for someone.

It’s a weakness that would be ruthlessly exploited. And yet for all that it is unwise it still happens even to those who would rather be immune.

It’s something that we don’t deserve. Makes me want to be a better person and love tells us that we are worth it even when we have doubts.

It’s home. Its the heart. Its the anger that makes you want to destroy whatever hurts your kadan.

It's having a friend to play pranks with, someone who cares even when you get mad at them.

It’s the desire to protect, the way the days without her seem endless and the worry that never fades when you are apart.

It’s soft moments, entwined together counting stars and holding hands. It’s passion and sweetness and makes you feel beautiful.

It’s a song that crosses countries, a longing deep within the heart. It’s a crystal grace preserved in memory and a face that you’ll never forget

It’s seeing something, someone broken and wanting to help. Its never abandoning what and who you love no matter what the general consensus is. About rebuilding and strengthening, together making something that lasts.

It’s sweeping romantic gestures, and subtle little things. A smile that only you seem to bring to their face, a bunch of roses or… a… special…gift… Excuse me, I need to go…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> at the end this time.
> 
> characters in order: Solas, Dorian, Vivienne, Blackwall, Iron Bull, Sera, Cullen, Josephine, Leliana, Varric and Cassandra.


	22. Numb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> inspired by [Fell Far from the Tree](http://archiveofourown.org/works/4905739) by the lovely Dammit_Hawke and LinnyBear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gen, in specific this chapter was inspired by the events of Redcliff in FFftT (thus SPOILERS FOR THIS WORK)

Lock it down, tune it out  
Pretend you can't hear the singing  
The screaming, the wrongness  
That slides through familial bonds

Go numb, hide deep within yourself  
Cover the lava flow with ice, pray  
That a glacier's worth is enough  
To stay numb until you see this through

They buy you time, though you shout  
This is a battle they've no hope of winning  
Arrows fly with deadly intent, a calmness  
Surrounding the ones that have been wronged

Go numb, pull the threads back into yourself  
Hold back the explosion, stay  
Calm and focused - tough  
As it is to feel them fall, see them lose

Go back and set the world to rights, light aflame with the power you hold  
In your hand and by faith and by grace may you be allowed to grow old

Go forth so that the world may be mended with your family and friends  
By your side, stand strong, trust in yourself, you will make a better end


	23. Calm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cassaric
> 
> a birthday poem for Satine86 who is a lovely person and a great fanfic author

Tempestuous tumultuous beginnings  
Threatened, chained, table flipping  
And then an explosion changed everything  
Once more

It’s his voice that awakens longings, his teasing giving hope  
That they are alright, and they fight each other only with words  
Fight for each other, red eyes, one kiss and the world burns

It’s her voice that gives him pause, the realisation that both erred  
And grateful, tickled, though he sees it now - the closeted romantic  
He writes for her, words he doesn’t believe he’ll get the chance to live out

It’s his voice that stills her, keeps her focused, “c’mon, breathe, Seeker,”  
And she does, in and out as the sounds blur together but his voice  
Is gorgeous - she prays she did not speak aloud, but he is smirking…

It’s her voice that grants him peace when the red lyrium screams  
His name, her quiet recitation of the faith he cannot share but her  
Faith is like her - strong, unyielding against the storms and he finds hope

It’s his voice asking a question she never thought she’d want to hear  
Candles, flowers, a new chapter - the whole works, he do anything  
And its her voice with a joyful “yes” that changes his world for good

Calm and certain endings  
Gentle and sweet the curtain falls  
And they lived happy despite everything  
Forever and ever more


	24. Mellifluous

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for vehlr and weatheredlaw because of [saudade](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6122428)

eloquence, the words that flow, a river of ink, a harried messenger crow  
distance is subsumed by love whose mellowed tones shine in written words  
and these truths are committed to paper that their relationship is no ephemeral thing  
and these truths are written to soon be spoken when they’re not separated by land and by sea

the wedding behind, still trials ahead with no-one else to take up the flame  
longing for halcyon rest they will fight with the rest, refusing to shoulder the blame  
and this is the truth that arguments happen that separation’s a blessing sometimes  
and this is the truth that they are lodestone for the other and will reunite every time.

words never came easily but she writes now callused fingers stained with ink  
awaiting the answer with baited breath, into his words like an embrace she sinks  
And the truth is written for all to see in signed documents, in living, in love  
And the truth is no matter how it all ends they wouldn’t change being in love  



	25. Letter writing: Hearts shatter and worlds burn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solavellan sonnet(esque)

He writes, his spies are tasked with her well-being  
It’s selfish but he cannot resist the pull of her love  
And in his fireplace burns paper to ash, with her name  
Penned over and over again in a night’s despair

She writes, her letters say little but its enough  
Because her handful of years cannot balance his millennia  
And its selfish and silent but she won’t think of him  
As her enemy, her letters never once call him Fen’Harel

They write and each stroke of the pen is  
Another scar on the heart another step  
Close to the world’s ending one day they  
Will meet and it will be a bloody battlefield

But for tonight they take up their pens  
And begin to write their letters again


End file.
